Core against Viseeriak
by lyristartist
Summary: Rose and the part human part Time Lord Doctor go through a series of events in their lives. Now back together, Rose is unsure of her feelings. She loves the Doctor. But not this Doctor. But is this Doctor the same Doctor? There is an important radiation reading reaching Torchwood. However, it is not just a simple radiation. What will they face and how will they save Pete's World?
1. Prologue

Prologue

* * *

She had never felt so betrayed before.  
And, oh, she had been through so much of it. Betrayed when Jimmy Stone first came into her life to get her ripped apart, betrayed when Marlene had "forgotten" to tell her about that party at Owen's, betrayed when she had bought that stupid Tee only for it to be a size smaller, betrayed when the Doctor, the first Doctor, the one all leather and blue eyes, had sent her home while he was fighting Daleks at the Game station. Betrayed. Constantly betrayed.  
But those betrayals did not compare to the one she felt right now.

"Alright," Rose began. "both of you, answer me this... When I last stood on this beach on the worst day of my life, what was the last thing you said to me?"

The two Doctors looked at each other. "Go on then, say it." she insisted.

"I said 'Rose Tyler'." the full Time Lord replied, knowing the certitude of his motive.

"Y-Yeah, and how was that sentence gonna end?" she prompted once again.

The Doctor gazed upon the forms of her face. He knew he was hurting her, _oh he knew_. And it hurt him, even more, to know he was the one doing so. But if through hurting her he could offer her a new beginning, then the hurt he was also feeling was worth living with.

"Does it need saying?" he finally replied.

"And you...Doctor?" Rose turned to the other one, the meta-crisis, the half human half Time Lord Doctor, the Doctor that shouldn't have been.

The man slowly leaned into her ear and whispered. After doing so, Rose stared at him in amazement and confusion before grabbing him by the lapels into a hurtful but still loving kiss.

She then abruptly pulled away at the wheezing sound of the TARDIS which was now dematerializing, fading into nothingness. She had taken a few steps towards it but… it was already too late.

 _The Doctor was gone._


	2. Chapter One

Chapter One

* * *

He remembered the one time he had stranded on Lump in the Galaxy of Majolis Nebula. "The planet of Wisdom" as they had called it. It had those great glass mountains that would glow in shades of yellow, purple and blue depending on the temperature of its surroundings. It was a little planet, even smaller than the lost Moon of Poosh. And to his surprise it was reigned by a single person: King Jdoka VII. And the people loved him, oh, so much. Blimey, they would've taken a bullet for him. Literally.

In the battle of Majolis River between Lump and Brisket, they had fought for hundreds of years before the Doctor had come to change their minds. He held one of the best speeches ever spoken that night while it rained. His lungs became sore not long after.

And now he was stranded on Darlig Ulv Stranden with Rose and Jackie Tyler, unable to say a single word. Not even one. Not one single syllable, a vowel, anything!

"Right," Jackie approached the two. "I've phoned your father. D'you know what? Rubbish that Doctor of yours, I tell ya'! Bloody Norway! No wonder he brought you one year later home if he can't even get the place right."

"Oi!" the Doctor raised his voice. "It's not like I can pick and choose!"

"It was a dimension crack, Mum," Rose explained. "He barely slipped us through."

"Yeah, now you're taking his side. S' not like we're gonna freeze to death anyway, ey?" there was sarcasm in Jackie's voice. She rolled her eyes.

"Mum, I'd be more worried about what Dad will say about your little trip if I were you." Rose said. "He _did_ say not to come."

"Yeah, well I couldn't leave ya'. So he'll have to just deal with it." Jackie scoffed. "There's a motel just up the hill if we walk that way." she pointed north. "Last time we ended up here I had to drink cold tea because of you." she now talked to the Doctor. "Would've been nice if the Doctor chose a warmer place like… I don't know, Hawaii?"

Jackie's words slowly faded away as she looked over at the sea. It was the same as always, Rose thought, cold and humid and a little bit windy. She hugged herself as they walked up the hill and over to the motel that Jackie had specified. And as they walked, she noticed tears rolling down her cheeks. Silent tears. Warm tears. Tears of pain and anguish.

The Doctor took a peek at Rose, only to see her emotionless face and rosy cheeks wet. His singular heart broke. If this were the case in the other Universe he would've hugged her and told her that everything's okay. And as much as he wanted to do so, he did _no_ t want to put himself and her into an awkward situation. Especially with Jackie around them.

Apart from being extremely exhausted, which _oh God it was disgusting_ , the Doctor felt fine. Maybe a little bit itchy around some areas of his body and some organs were slightly shifted, but that had something to do with his body adjusting to the new world. Pete's World, as he previously named it. And he was still not sure about his time senses, which were a bit shaken too ever since his creation when Donna touched his hand. The Doctor wiggled his fingers. In the back of his mind, he chuckled. This stupid, fighting hand. In all fabrication of reality, he grew out of a hand. A bit like worms, he though quoting his best friend Donna.

The awkward tension that had created itself as they rode a zeppelin back to London made them really uncomfortable to talk to each other, so Rose had decided for a nap in the even more uncomfortable chair. She fell asleep almost immediately but kept waking up in between 'cause of the position she was sitting in.

The Doctor found himself very pleased when they had landed, stretching his legs he took a deep breath smelling the freshness in the air. Then they hopped into a limousine that drove them back to Tyler's mansion, now incredibly different from the outside.

The garden seemed bigger, he noticed. And there were a lot more flowers around since last time.

"Now, before we go in," Rose surprised him when she spoke. He hadn't heard her voice for hours. "Tony is a bit… energetic."

"Pfft," the Doctor scoffed. "I can handle energetic, Rose Tyler. I am the pure definition of energetic. I mean, look at me." he jumped once. "Reality bomb, fighting against Daleks and I'm still hopping." he grinned.

And as he took his last hop, the Doctor fainted.

"Mum," Rose called. "The Doctor! Help me get him into the house!"

* * *

There was a crepuscular ray creeping through the curtains of the room he had been sleeping in. The Doctor flung his eyes open followed by a gasp. He abruptly rose but regretted it when a strange wave of pain passed his body. He winced, rubbing the back of his head with his left hand. His throat was a bit dry, well, when he thought dry, he didn't mean just dry, he meant dry as in really reaaaaallly dry. The Doctor looked to his left and right, still unable to see clearly. After a yawn and a stretch, he shook his head to reason with his tiredness. _Disgusting_ , he thought again.

The Doctor found himself in a beige room with golden accents on the wall and small little details in white. There were two curtains hanging in front of the two big windows. When he looked outside, he could see the green garden of the mansion and a weird looking statue of a beast. There were two ottoman seats at the end of the bed, one of them slightly displaced. _It must've been moved_ , he whispered. Then at his right, he noticed a nightstand and on the nightstand a cup of tea. A pink cup of tea. A pink cup of _cold_ tea.

The Doctor tried to remember what happened, but failed terribly, hence the headache he felt approaching.

" _Mum," Rose called. "The Doctor! Help me get him into the house!"_

" _Blimey," Jackie ran up to them. "What's he done now?"_

 _The two women pulled him up, one at each side of the Doctor's, his arms around their necks. "It must be the regeneration. His body is trying to adjust." Rose explained._

" _But I though this one was human."_

" _He is!" Rose replied, maybe a bit louder than expected. "I… I don't know. Let's just get him inside."_

" _Pete! Get your arse down here!" Jackie yelled for her husband._

 _When Pete Tyler opened the door to the mansion, he froze. He certainly did not expect the Doctor at his porch yet there he was. "What happened to him?" he asked while rushing to their side._

" _He just collapsed." Jackie said, at which the Doctor opened his eyes again, then dropped._

 _After changing him into some jim-jams that Pete had lent her, which for the record were a bit too large for the Doctor's slim body, and tucking him into bed, Rose sat on one of the ottomans in the room. She felt her head fall forwards and her elbows resting on her knees._

 _All that time spending with the Doctor. And for what? So unfair, she thought. And it wasn't unfair only to her, but to this Doctor as well. If… he were the Doctor anymore. The Doctor, the real Doctor, should've thought twice before making such a reckless decision. Who was he to decide anyway? He had no right! No right at all! He was was so selfish and self-absorbed, he had forgotten that she also had a mind of her own. Rose was mad at the Doctor, the proper Doctor, the full Time Lord Doctor. And not only was she mad, but she was also extremely hurt as well. He had rejected her feelings and everything she felt for him. And now this Doctor was also stuck with her. No more TARDIS, no more time travel, no more planets saving. And it was rubbish and as mentioned, unfair._

 _There was a gentle knock at the door. Jackie peeked her head in. "Made some tea." she said. "D'you think he'd like one too?"_

 _Rose shifted in her seat. After a moment of silence, she finally turned to face her mother. "What do I do, mum?" her voice cracked, tears streaming down her cheeks._

" _Oh, my little girl." Jackie rushed to her side, taking Rose into a tight embrace. She placed a kiss on her forehead._

" _What do I do?" Rose asked again as if trying to find the answer herself. "I don't know. The only thing I can do right now is wait. And I hate waiting so much. I've waited 5 years to see him. And now? Look at me! Look where I am. Stuck again in a parallel dimension."_

 _And they sat there in the stillness of the night for some time._

 _After a while, Jackie took her daughter's face in her palms to look into her eyes. "Rose, you can't live like this. Come, let's have some tea. The Doctor will be fine. We just need to give him some time like last time, right?"_

" _Yeah, but-"_

" _No buts. I am tired of seeing Rose Marion Tyler cry." Jackie rose from the ottoman. "We'll be waiting for you downstairs."_


	3. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

* * *

After changing into his suit again, which apparently had been cleaned and stripped of all the things his pockets contained, the Doctor put on his shoes and slowly opened the door to the bedroom.

Rose was sitting at the kitchen table, sipping from a cup of steamy tea. Her hair was beautifully falling down her shoulders, bits of it glowing in the gaze of Sun. She looked much thinner, he noticed. She was wearing dark blue ripped jeans and a tight beige blouse with lace at every end.

When she saw him come in, she smiled.

"Good morning," she said. "well, afternoon." Rose looked down at her watch, then back up. "Hello." she said again.

"Hello." the Doctor grinned. He felt like he was growing a second heart. Then his brows furrowed. "What do you mean afternoon?"

"It's three in the afternoon." she said. "You've slept for whole 16 hours. Fancy some tea?"

"Oh, yes." he winked happily. "Always some tea. Very british."

The Doctor sat at the table. "Are you sure I slept for 16 hours? That's a bit unlikely. And a bit nasty too, no offense."

Rose rolled her eyes before setting his tea in front of him, then moved to the refrigerator. After grabbing some food, she put two slices of bread in the toaster. She then let a jar of jam slide on the table, then carefully placed some butter, honey and fruits beside it.

"Oh wait," she told him, opening multiple cupboards. "Where did I put it? _Oh!_ " Rose exclaimed. Then to the Doctor's surprise she held out what seemed to be… a blue banana? "I had to hide it from Tony. He likes bluebanas so much I had to-"

" _Bluebanas_?" the Doctor interrupted her, shocked. He then gently took it from her.

"Don't judge a book by its cover." Rose giggled.

"Yes, but this is not a book, Rose! This is the greatest resource of protein and potassium and they destroyed its beauty!"

"Come on, give it a try." she bit her lower lip, smiling.

After peeling the banana, or in this case bluebana (who names a fruit bluebana?), the Doctor took a bite. A look of disgust made its appearance. "Oh, oh!" Rose jumped to get a towel for him to spit it out. She laughed. "So bad?"

"A disgrace."

"I didn't expect that. It's a mix of banana and blueberries. Here," Rose laughed even harder at his comment. "It's strawberry jam. And this," she turned around. "is a knife. Please don't use your fingers."

The Doctor was so surprised to hear her say that his eyebrows shot up. "Rose-" he began but was cut off by a woman named Jackie Tyler entering the kitchen.

"How are you, sweetheart?" Jackie gave the Doctor a tight hug, squeezing the light out of him for a second. She then proceeded to place a wet kiss on his cheek. "Feeling better?" she let him go.

"Yeah," the Doctor wiped his cheek. "Yes, I feel better. Thank you for… lending me pajamas."

"No biggie."

"Mummy! Mummy!" A small boy with blond hair entered the kitchen. When he saw the Doctor, a wide grin plastered on his face. Tony looked at Rose first, waiting for approval. When she nodded, he approached the Doctor. The Doctor smiled.

"And who do we have here?" the Doctor asked.

"My name is Tony."

"Tony? Oh, I've heard so much about you!" the Doctor shook the little boy's hand. "I'm the Doctor."

Tony's brown eyes lightened with excitement. A look that the Doctor had seen before. The same look like that time, when he took her hand and told her 'run'.

"Is… Is it..."

"Go on," the Doctor said.

"Is it true you can travel in time and space?" the little boy asked shyly. At that, the Doctor's gaze fell upon Rose, who was leaning against the fridge, her arms crossed. He smiled at her and in return, she smiled too. It felt just like old days.

"Yes." the Doctor replied. "Every galaxy in time and space. Every planet, every Moon. Next stop, everywhere."

"Where is it?" Tony jumped happily. "The TARDIS. Where is it?"

Rose's eyes widened before stepping forward. "Tony, isn't it time for your nap?" she asked, at which Tony pouted, but understandingly left. "I am so sorry..." Rose sighed.

"It's okay. It's not your fault." he asserted.

"No. It's the Doctor's." she said.

"Rose," he started. "I am the Do-"

"And I will never forgive him." she cut him off. "Not ever."

He decided it were better not to continue, especially after her affirmation, however, there was a big rock laying on his chest. He was rather confused, but he did not blame. The existence of a meta crisis was so thin, that there were no concrete ways of defining it. The Doctor bit his inner cheek out of anxiety and anger. He was angry at himself, in a way. Because he saw Rose's smile so flawlessly emerge, but in the back of his mind he knew, _oh he knew_ , she was hiding all the hurt. She deserved all time and space, yet here they were, stuck on Earth. The slow path.

* * *

Rose was sitting on the couch when her mobile rang and to her relief, it was a call from Torchwood. She and the Doctor had suffered the last couple of hours listening to Jackie's story and nagging about how completely dangerous her life had been back at the Powell Estate after Rose and the Doctor had gone to see the stars. How people pestered her for information about the two and how she'd always protect them. The Doctor rose instantly from his seat when he heard the ringtone.

"Ianto." Rose answered.

" _Safe and sound, I see."_ the man on the other line replied.

Ianto was one of the agents that worked at Torchwood Three, Cardiff. Rose had worked with him before. With him, Owen, Jake, Toshiko and Mickey. But with Mickey now gone, they were one man down.

" _Look, sorry to bother you,_ " Ianto then continued. _"But we really need you here. And Mickey. Cardiff is overflowing with Weevils."_

"Mickey won't come."Rose said.

" _Why? Is he okay?"_. When no reply came back, Ianto asked. _"He stayed back, didn't he?"_

"Yeah."

Ianto paused for a short moment. " _Well, I am happy for him. Better a new Earth than chasing Weevils, don't you think?"_

"Yeah." in the corner of her eye, Rose noticed the Doctor pacing forth and back. He was restless, maybe even worse than Tony. "Well, I guess we'll talk when I get there. And Ianto?"

" _What?"_

"...never mind. You'll see for yourself." she then hung up.


	4. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

* * *

Kate Lee shivered at the images of the previous night. She remembered the process she had gone through to actually understand what had happened.

It wasn't long after her shift at Hayley's when she came back home to find her fiancé, Betty, dead on the floor in their bedroom. How could that have happened? It was impossible, completely and utterly _impossible_.

The police had told her it must've been a fire, but Kate knew it couldn't have been one. There were no traces of it. Especially in a bedroom. There was no stove, they didn't smoke, they had no candles.

Betty was the only one burned to death.

She slowly approached the casket Betty lay in. "You're still so beautiful." she said while tenderly touching her cheek through the white veil. In the corner of her eye, she noticed her mother approach.

"You're in the house of God, mum." Kate whispered. "Don't make rude comments."

"God forbid this marriage, child." her mother replied. "Gay marriage is a sin."

"God loves all." she calmly replied. "Now, please leave. You have never supported us, so why should I need your support now? Especially from _you_."

* * *

"Everything all right?" the Doctor asked, but in his eyes, she detected the look of 'please tell me something is up so I can escape your mother'.

"Yes. Well, no." Rose replied. "Well, yes _and_ no."

" _Yes and no_ on a molecular level kind of way or _yes and no_ on a subatomic particle level kind of way?"

" _Yes and no_ on an atomic level kind of way."

They both grinned at each other. "What are you two blabbering about?" Jackie interjected. "You sound like two idiots."

"Two idiots with big brains." the Doctor replied but then cringed at his own statement. "I'm not saying that _ever_ again."

From the other side of the spacious room, they saw Pete enter. He placed kisses on Rose's and Jackie's cheeks, then turned to the Doctor. "I hope you're well, Doctor."

"Yes. Of course. Thank you for your hospitality." they shook hands.

"Of course. You've saved my planet, you've given me a chance for a new life. That's the least I can do." Pete shrugged. "Now, I know this is out of the blue, but we need to have an important conversation. If you'll follow me to my office?"

* * *

"I understand you are not the same Doctor?" Pete sat at his desk, gesturing to the Doctor to do the same. "Or so I've heard. Jackie tried to explain it to me, but her description was a bit..." he laughed. "And I'd like to hear it from you."

The Doctor leaned back in his seat, unbothered by the question. " _Weeellll_ , technically speaking, I am the same man but I am not. I was shot and was about to regenerate. After healing the damage to my body with the regeneration energy, I channeled the excess energy into my hand," he wiggled his fingers. "a bio-matching receptacle, allowing me, well him, well practically the same people. In a way-"

"Is this going somewhere?" Pete asked.

"Oh _yes_." the Doctor nodded. "Allowing me to heal but not change appearance or personality. Shortly after this, my friend Donna, _oh you would've liked her_ , touched this hand, causing an instantaneous two-way biological Meta-Crisis, allowing the energy to regenerate my entire missing body."

Pete pursed his lips. "So... you grew out of a hand?"

"Yes. This hand." the Doctor held it up.

"But that doesn't answer my question." he furrowed his brows. "Are you or are you _not_ the same man?"

"The short answer is 'yes'."

"Rose doesn't seem to think that way."

"I haven't had a chance to explain it to her."

"Would you like me to?"

"No." the Doctor shook his head. "No. That would be unfair. Especially since there's plenty of time now."

* * *

"Rose, were you the one to empty my pockets?" the Doctor closed the door to Pete's office.

"Yeah." she replied. "Before sending your suit to the cleaners. I didn't want someone to get a hold of something important. I pulled everything out and stuck it on the shelf."

"And the TARDIS coral?"

"It's down in the basement. I wanted her to be in a peaceful and quiet place."

The Doctor's mouth twitched. "What?" Rose asked.

"You said 'she'."

"Yeah, well," Rose tilted her head slightly. "She _is_ a she. Isn't she?"

"How do you know?"

"Well, I don't know. It just... feels like it." she replied. The Doctor's lips grew a grin. " _What_?" Rose asked again.

"Rose Tyler. You never cease to amaze me." She grinned back, her tongue sticking between her teeth. _Ah, there was that smile._ "Oh, by the way. I need to ask you something."

"Anything. I mean, yeah."

"I need a doctor."

"Why? Are you still sick?" Rose quickly rose her hand, placing her palm on top of his forehead. The Doctor made a face. "Sorry. It's... out of habit. With Tony and all."

"Y-yeah." the Doctor scratched the back of his neck. "Of course."

"So?" she asked.

"What?" he smiled. "Oh, yeah. Sorry. I need a doctor. But not any doctor. I need someone you completely trust. This body has been through some stuff and I need to know what I am dealing with. The anatomy seems a bit... wrong. So I need to make sure."

"Well, perfect timing." she grinned. "Fancy a trip to Cardiff?"


	5. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

* * *

Later that day, when the darkness had started to fall upon London, _which apparently_ _happened_ _fast due to the season and some stars that were still missing_ , the Doctor cared to retrieve the things from his pockets. From the shelf, he reclaimed two rubber bands which he had used to connect two atomic multiplicators a week ago, an air freshener, a keychain with a lantern, Donna's hand lotion, a toothbrush, a rubber duck, and a sharpie. Everything except for the TARDIS coral, which according to Rose, was held down in the basement. He was to take a look at it a bit later.

There was a knock on the door. Rose entered carefully, both her hands occupied. In one hand she held three shopping bags and in the other a portofolio. The Doctor rushed to her side to help.

"Thanks." she said as he took the bags from her. The Doctor shot her a confused look. "You didn't expect to live in that suit for the rest of your life, did you?" then he looked at the portofolio. "And this is your identity."

"When did you-" he began.

"Last night. I couldn't sleep so I made some online shopping for you and dad took care of the documents." Rose shrugged, handing him the papers. "When I first came here, mum was able to seize the identity of the old Jackie Tyler, but for me, I was someone new. So," Rose sat on his bed. "From now on you're John Jack Smith."

"Jack?" he made a face. "Why Jack?"

"John Smith is too generic. John _Jack_ Smith is more believable. "

He gazed at the information. Allegedly, his mother's name was Jane Smith and his father's name was Jack Harkness. He was 32 of age, his blood type was B-Positive and he was born in Manchester on the 24 of October.

The Doctor then opened the first shopping bag and at the sight of it, he cringed.

"Sorry," Rose said. "You don't like them."

"No, no. It's not that. Is just..." he bit his inner cheek. "I own things, Rose. Never have I thought I'd own things. Owning things is so..."

"Domestic?"

"Yeah."

"Well, dig deeper. I'm sure you'll like that one." she pointed. "To be honest, I don't know your style. I thought that since you looked like _him_ , you might have the same taste. So I just bought it."

"Oh, Rose. This is fantastic!" he exclaimed and she could've sworn there was a slight Northen accent to be heard. Her heart skipped a beat. "Molto bene!" he continued as he took out what seemed to be a brown trench coat. It wasn't exactly the same as his old one, but that one would do.

After pulling it on, he twirled proudly. Rose just watched his excitement from afar, lost in her thoughts. He looked exactly like him. The same appearance, that was for sure, maybe just a bit taller than the other Doctor. But the rest… same smile, same laughter, same energy. Yet he was still not the same man.

"Rose?" he called when he saw her staring. Rose shook her head, taking her eyes away.

"Yeah?"

"Where did you get this?" the Doctor lifted slowly his sonic screwdriver. Rose's heart sunk.

She rose from the bed, gathering the empty bags that were to be thrown away, then paced around as if looking for more trash.

"Rose." he called again.

"Look," she peered him straight in the eye. "I just got it, okay? I thought you might want to have it and I can't use it." with that, she dashed out of the room.

* * *

The next morning after packing some clothes and the TARDIS coral and placing them inside Rose's car, they found themselves in the busy traffic towards Cardiff. They hadn't really spoken about the previous night but chose to ignore it as if it never happened.

"She had hat boxes, Rose! Boxes full of _hats_!" the Doctor talked about his encounter with Donna, the day they had fought to save the Earth from Adipose.

They were having a great time, laughing and talking about their personal adventures while they weren't together. And Rose almost believed him to be the proper Doctor when he spoke that way. But she didn't mind. She loved listening to his voice, it was kind of soothing.

The Doctor on the other hand was amazed by how she had managed to get the dimension canon to work. When she described it, there was excitement in her voice, yet at the same time hurt and despair. Not only did the dimension canon not work anymore, but she had wasted years of her life working on it while she could've carried on, starting a new one.

"We couldn't really pick a place and a time. We practically had to look for traces of the TARDIS, void stuff. Tried bonding the dimension canon with _her_ through telepathic fields, but since the canon was not telepathic we failed. I failed. And then one day, it starts working. Out of the blue." Rose explained. "I once ended up in Cardiff in 1869. Met Charles Dickens for a second time in a pub down Severn Road. Did you know he actually _didn't_ write A Christmas Carol? Then when I came back I did some research. There was none, no trace of A Christmas Carol! None at all!"

"Really?!" the Doctor was surprised.

"And that's not all! Agatha Christie! Never wrote a book!" Rose widened her eyes. "She became a medical sister at 30."

"I actually met Agatha. Lovely woman. She helped me and Donna sort the problem with this giant wasp. Well, granted, it wasn't just a giant wasp. It was a Vespiform from the Silfrax Galaxy."

"Really?" Rose asked. "What was it doing there?"

* * *

It was already late in the afternoon when they reached the hotel they were to sleep at. There reserved a two beds bedroom with an ensuite and a bathroom. Shortly after taking a shower and getting dressed in more comfortable clothes, they ordered some food and some wine.

"What's the occasion?" the Doctor pointed at the bottle of alcohol.

"Haven't had one in years." she replied. Rose sat on the edge of his bed, pouring some wine in two glasses. She handed one to the Doctor. "I don't know about you, but I am in desperate need of some relaxation."

Two hours later and two bottles of wine, both the Doctor and Rose sat in silence, each in their own thoughts. The Doctor didn't believe he'd drink from that wine, but he did. And he _liked_ it. With one hand on his forehead, he lay down his bed peeking at Rose. Her cheeks were flushed red and he could see her eyes not able to concentrate on one thing for too long. Gathering his courage, he took a deep breath.

"Rose," he called. "we need to talk."

"Yeah?" she bit her lower lip in frustration. "What about?"

"You know what about." he stared directly into her eyes. "Rose, we need to talk about what happened on the beach-"

His sentence got abruptly interrupted by a scream down the halls. They both jumped on their feet.

"Here comes trouble."


	6. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

* * *

Tylor Cornell shut his eyes for a second. Then he reopened them. Then he shut them again. He repeatedly did so with bewilderment. He stared at the screen, pacing backward and forwards, one of his hands covering his mouth. And then he gasped.

Reaching into his pocket, he grabbed his phone and dialed.

" _This is Connor. Leave a message_." the voice behind the phone said.

"Connor, this is important." Tylor began, leaning against the desk. "Something is wrong. The Pacific Plate. It's moving. Connor, it's moving South. And it's already moved 30 mm the last five days. Call me."

With that, he hung up, running his palm over his face. After grabbing his coat and pulling it on, he proceeded out of the lab and out of the building. But before reaching his car, in the corner of his eye, he noticed. He noticed it. What was that?

Tylor Cornell lumbered in its direction, breathing heavily.

"Hello, little guy." he said and when he touched it, a bright fire-like light occurred.

 _Tylor Cornell was dead._

* * *

"Here comes trouble."

The Doctor and Rose flew down the stairs and just around the corner from where the screaming was coming. An elderly woman stood there, paralyzed.

"What is it? What's wrong?" he asked the woman.

"Doctor." Rose's hands trembled. She felt a shiver go up and down her spine.

There lay a man on the cold floor of the hotel, dead. "Burned to death." the Doctor said. He inspected his surroundings carefully. "Where did it come from? Did you see how he died?" he now spoke to the woman.

The woman was unable to talk. "Hey," Rose placed herself in front of her. "My name is Rose Tyler. What is your name?"

"Marion." she swallowed hard. "Marion Beth."

"Marion Beth. This is the Doctor. Don't worry, we'll find what did this. But for that, we need your help first." Rose turned around to see the Doctor sonic the dead man. "Did you see who or _what_ did this?"

"N-no." Marion replied. "Oh, I knew him. Oh, Frank." she placed her palm on her cross necklace, fighting back tears.

Shortly after, there was a crowd of people emerging, and the Doctor had instructed them to go back to their rooms and not to alert the police. This was a case for Torchwood.

"Feeling better?" Rose settled a cup of tea in front of Marion. She then sat beside her on the couch in their ensuite.

"Yes. Thank you."

"Tell me, Marion." the Doctor lumbered around. "You said you knew him. But he was one of the porters here, which makes you...what? A regular?"

"Yes. I always come here this time of the year." Marion explained. "After my husband died, _God forgive him_ , I still kept the tradition of coming here each year, to Cardiff."

"So, you know this hotel very well, I presume?" he asked.

"Yes. Nice family, the owners of it."

"Has something like this ever happened before? Was there any fire? Any explosion? Or a gas leak?"

"No. Not from what I can remember."

The Doctor and Rose exchanged glances.

"Thank you, miss Beth." Rose smiled walking the woman to her room. "You've helped us a lot."

When Rose had returned back to her room, she found the Doctor pondering. He was inspecting his sonic screwdriver, and with the other hand rubbing his chin. He didn't look up. "I don't get it." he said.

"What's wrong?"

"I mean, everything." he finally raised his head. "There's no way he could've burned to death. Not just out of nowhere. And there's another thing. It happened fast. Very fast."

"You mean he burned instantly?"

"Yeah." he sighed. "I met an entity that could burn you a while ago. But it was years in the future and the victims would always end up ash. This one died from extremely high radiations. Very high. Yet there's no trace of it around the hotel. I've checked."

Rose's ITouch beeped. "Sorry. Must be the CCTV footage." she opened the file. The Doctor joined her into watching the screen. "There he is." she said.

Frank William was just patrolling the corridors. When he came around the corner where he died, he turned around. They saw him back away, waving his hands in front of him, but what had killed him was hidden around the wall. And then Frank just died. In just a second.

Rose reran the footage without asking, concentrating harder. Same thing.

"What could it be?" she asked. "I've never seen anything like it before."

"Me neither." the Doctor bit his lip. "Which makes it kind of exciting, don't you think." he wiggled his eyebrows.

"Doctor." she made a face. But then unable to contain herself, she grinned.

* * *

Rose and the Doctor were laying in their beds trying to sleep. Well, the Doctor did. She couldn't.

She kept thinking about what they had seen, unable to come to a conclusion. She tossed and turned around, adjusting her pillow every ten seconds. Rose sighed.

"No. No." she heard a murmur. "Rose...no."

Rose rose from her bed, traversing to the Doctor's side. He was having a nightmare.

"Rose..." he said in his sleep. "I am sorry."

"Shhh. Shhh." she gently took his hand, placing a soft kiss on it.

"Sorry… Sorry.."

"Shhh. It's okay. It's okay, Doctor." she whispered. "It's okay."

* * *

The Doctor woke up to the rays of the sun streaming through the curtains, cascading over his face. He reached to take off the covers but found himself unable to. When he opened his eyes, he noticed a hand holding his and Rose curled up awkwardly in the chair beside his bed.

"Rose." he called with a soft voice, at which Rose gained consciousness. She gazed around.

"Sorry," she yawned. "Must've fallen asleep." she took her hand back.

"What are you doing there?"

"Hm? Oh… I just. I don't know. Must've fallen asleep."

"Yeah. I get that. But why in that chair?"

She reached to the hair tie on the nightstand to tie her hair up. "You had a nightmare."

The Doctor looked curious. "Did I?" he asked. "I don't remember having one."

"Yeah, you had one when we arrived home too. I thought it must've been like the last time with the Doctor. With… the other Doctor."

"Last time I was regenerating energy to keep me alive."

"That's why I put a cup of tea beside you." she explained. "Thought you'd wake up and drink it."

The Doctor stood up. "Well, I'd like to have one now." he fought a yawn. "So, after you." he pointed at the bathroom door.


	7. Chapter Six

Chapter Six

* * *

" _The breach is open! Into the void! Ha!" the Doctor exclaimed. Looking behind, he saw both Cybermen and Daleks get lifted off their feet and into the air. They were all being sucked into the void, rapidly and with great force._

" _Offline." he heard a robotic voice say. Turning around, he noticed that Rose's lever had moved a little._

" _I've got to get it upright!" Rose gasped for air, fighting the suction that was now slowly decreasing, and after multiple failures, she managed to lock it back on._

" _Online and Locked."_

 _Rose grabbed onto the lever with all her might, yet the power of the suction was so strong, her fingers felt like slipping away._

" _Rose, hold on!" she heard him cry._

 _The Doctor saw her body being horizontally pulled towards the void, and as much as he had tried to reach her, his arms weren't long enough. His hearts were furiously beating inside his chest, 'Hold on! Hold on! Hold on!' he thought, 'Please, Rose! Hold on!'_

 _He squinted his eyes at the severe light that was coming from the direction of the wall, then he gazed back at her. And her hands. Her hands whose fingers were slipping away._

" _NO!" he yelled. It was such a loud and long 'no' that even the other dimension could've heard it. He broke at the image of Rose now nearing the void through the air. "NO!"_

 _But right before getting sucked in, Rose felt her body being caught. And then she stood in front of a white wall. She looked around. No. Hands shivering and chest exploding, she hit the wall. Once. Twice. Three times. Hammering it with all her might. "Take me back! Take me back!" she screamed, tears dripping down her cheeks. "Take me back!"_

 _Even now, how was he able to hear her? How was he able to hear her cry? How was he able to feel her through?_

 _Slowly, he leaned against the wall with his ear. 'Rose..'_

* * *

Rose reached to the hair tie on the nightstand to tie her hair up. "You had a nightmare."

The Doctor looked curious. "Did I?" he asked. "I don't remember having one."

"Yeah, you had one when we arrived home too. I thought it must've been like the last time with the Doctor. With… the other Doctor."

"Last time I was regenerating energy to keep me alive."

"That's why I put a cup of tea beside you." she explained. "Thought you'd wake up and drink it."

The Doctor stood up. "Well, I'd like to have one now." he fought a yawn. "So, after you." he pointed at the bathroom door.

He watched her as she got up and left, leaving him to sit on the edge of the bed, contemplating. The Doctor pressed two fingers on his temples, massaging them a bit, then sighed.

 _He had lied to her._

After taking showers and checking on the TARDIS coral which they had taken with them, Rose and the Doctor found themselves waiting in the lounge for breakfast.

"Excuse me." the Doctor called after a waiter. There stood a beautiful man in his 20' with big brown eyes and ginger hair. He was holding their Menus. "Is there a shop around here? Just a little one. Doesn't have to be big. Just a shop so people can… shop."

"I'm very sorry." the other man replied. "We do not have one. You could try Bayley's over the street." and then he left.

The Doctor looked at Rose, mouth slightly open and brows furrowed. "Rude." he said, at which Rose laughed out loud. "Oi! Watch it, Earth girl!"

Rose gasped. "Earth...girl?"

"Sorry. That must be Donna's DNA." he shook his head. "I'm trying to stop, but she keeps po _pp_ ing in."

"I don't mind it."

"You don't?" the Doctor seemed surprised.

"No. It's like...you've got a new character." she shrugged. "It's different."

"Good different or bad different?" he grinned.

"Just... _differen_ t." she grinned back.

* * *

After breakfast, coffee and a short drive, they pulled up in the parking lot of Torchwood. Of course, no one beside them knew it was Torchwood's lot, but they had to hide their existence anyway.

They both entered what seemed to be a little souvenir shop. She rang the bell on the desk and waited patiently.

"How may I help you?" a man in a black suit exited without looking up. "We have maps over here," he pointed left. "souvenirs here," he pointed right. "and coffee."

"Hello, Ianto." Rose grinned.

"Rose!" he exclaimed. "Is so good to see you!"

"Care to let us in?"

"Us?" Ianto asked, then looked behind at the Doctor. "Oh. Who-"

"I'm the Doctor. Pleasure to meet you!" they shook hands, but Ianto could not stop staring. He turned from the Doctor to Rose and then back to the Doctor.

"Sorry, I didn't know." Ianto laughed awkwardly. "I thought… Sorry, I didn't expect you to end up here. Ianto. Ianto Jones."

"No one did." Rose interjected. "It's a really long story. Let us through?"

After Ianto had pushed a button under his desk, a giant door opened and they ambled trough, the walls revealing a cold and dark ambiance that would've made Rose shiver if it were the first time she came here. The Doctor slowly locked fingers with her, afraid of her reaction. And yet to his surprise, she didn't argue.

Was it okay for him to think that they were getting closer?

"Rose Tyler!" an Asian woman threw her arms in the air, smiling happily. After nearly tearing each other apart in a hug, they exchanged glances. "And who is this fella?" she said to the Doctor.

"I'm the Doctor."

"No, you're not." the woman replied. She tilted her head slightly. "No way." she looked at Rose. "NO WAY! Oi, Owen! Come up here!"

"I'm busy!" yelled a voice from the autopsy room. "What is it?" he came up the stairs, wearing a white bloody coat and a knife in his hand. "Oh, I suppose you're the Doctor. I'm Owen Harper. I'd shake your hand, but..."

"And I'm Toshiko Sato." the Asian woman continued. "Wait. Owen, how did you know it was him?"

"Rose Tyler brings a man around for the first time and she brings him to Torchwood. Pretty obvious if you ask _me_." Owen rolled his eyes. "Now, I'd stay with you and chit-chat but some of us got work to do."

"Wait, Owen!" Rose called. "I think I've got something more important than cutting up corpses."

"Cutting up _monster_ corpses. So, what's the deal?"

"The Doctor needs a doctor." she replied. "Wow. That's _something_ I never thought I'd say."

"You want _me_ to examine your boyfriend? You know, if you really wanted a good shag, you should've said."

At that, complete silence fell over Torchwood Three. They all stared at Owen. But not the Doctor. Oh, no. The Doctor didn't stare. He glared. With fury.

Owen panted silently. "Follow me." he said to the Doctor.


	8. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

* * *

"Where's Jake?" Rose asked. She was looking for some stuff while the Doctor was taking his examination.

Jake Simmons, Mickey's best friend, was now also a part of Torchwood. Torchwood Three to be more exact. He and Mickey were quite the team when they worked together, hunting down Weevils and caring for Cardiff's safety.

"He left just minutes before you came. Said he needed to take care of some things." Toshiko replied. "I've heard about Mickey." she crossed her arms. "And he did too."

"He must be mad."

"Oh, he's pissed. But I kind of understand." Tosh lowered her head to look at what Rose was holding. "What in the name of God are you doing with that?"

"Hm? Oh, I'm looking for components."

"What for?"

"For the baby TARDIS. The Doctor needs to create a humid environment before setting her up on top of the rift. And he asked me for these." Rose showed Toshiko a list.

"Why didn't you say?" the woman already ran off. "I know exactly where I can find these."

* * *

"Look, I am sorry about what I said before." Owen apologized.

"Yeah, well you _should_ be." the Doctor's brow shot up. "Never talk to her like that. Never again. Besides," he leaned against the wall. "I'm not the one you should be apologizing to."

Owen bit his inner cheek. He had heard of the Doctor. Rose used to tell them stories about the man that saved planets and galaxies and people. The man who could travel through time and space and the man who could take down a government with only six words. He knew of the Oncoming Storm and of the fury of a Time Lord. But he didn't expect all that to come into such a slim body. Owen was expecting something else.

"I don't really need _you_ to examine me." the Doctor resumed. "I just need your equipment. That's all."

After a mouth swab and a scan with the MRI machine, the Doctor jumped at the monitor. He curiously looked at the results, gasping and cringing and overall being a bit excited.

"Everything okay?" he saw Rose enter.

"Rose." he smiled. "Look. This is my brain." Owen joined them into staring at the screen. "Now, as you see, whilst my body has changed to be a bit more human, my brain stayed the same. See, frontal, parietal, occipital and temporal lobe. Hypothalamus seems to be alright, although my Corpus Callosum seems a bit bigger. And look at that." he pointed with a pen. "My cerebellum. See anything of interest?"

Rose squinted her eyes in concentration. "It's… no, but, what is that?"

There was an additional lobe the size of a cherry right beside his cerebellum.

" _That_ ," he nodded. "is what makes me a Time Lord. Well, part human- part Time Lord. Weeellll, that's what would make a Time Lord a Time Lord."

"Doctor.."

"Sorry. Rose, that is my Time Lord consciousness. _That_ is what comes in contact with all of my brain in case of regeneration and _that_ is what makes me...well… _me._ " he accentuated the word 'me'. "When _I_ sent my regeneration energy into this hand," he wiggled his fingers. "my consciousness split into two. Rose, I am-"

"Rose," Toshiko called from upstairs. "I have your stuff! I'll leave them on the counter."

"Sorry." Rose turned to the Doctor. "You were saying?"

"Nevermind.." the Doctor sighed. "I guess I'm just full of luck. Aren't I? Go."

"Not so fast." Owen stopped her from leaving. "You need an examination too. And now I know you'll be against it, you Tylers, but having traveled with that trickery of a cannon might have damaged some chromosomes."

"I'm not sick." Rose scoffed. "I feel completely fine."

"Really?" Owen asked. "Well then, prove me you're right."

"No, I'm not doing this. I am perfectly healthy. I have no problems." she looked over at the Doctor. "Tell him."

"Rose," the Doctor grabbed her hand. "When was the last time you actually slept?" she stared. "And another thing. I know I shouldn't say this but… Me still being part Time Lord is giving me some advantages."

"What do you mean?"

"Rose, I am sorry. I am _really_ sorry for telling you this, but your pheromones-"

"Okay!" she interrupted him instantly, hiding her face away from him. She walked over to the MRI machine. _Oh God, what was he even about to say? How could he be so thick? Oh God,_ she thought.

"Sorry." he rubbed the back of his neck, he felt his cheeks flush a little. "Sorry."

"Now, if you two lovebirds are done." Owen commented.

"One thing though." Rose held her finger up. "I'm not taking my clothes off."

After the examination, Rose, Toshiko, Ianto, and the Doctor were all chilling in the sitting area.

"Blimey," the Doctor exclaimed. "this is good. This is really _really_ good." he commented as he took a sip from his coffee. "Who made this?"

"I did." Ianto laughed.

"I'm telling you, he must've worked at Starbucks in the past." Tosh laughed.

"I told you, I _never_ did." Ianto sighed. "Nor will I ever."

"I mean, she's right." Rose teased. "This coffee is too good to be true. What if you were, in fact, some kind of barista in your past lives?"

"Could be." the Doctor joined.

"Haha. Very funny." Ianto was sarcastic.

"Rose." Owen came in, studying in shock the papers he was holding. "Something is wrong."

"What?" the Doctor flew up. He carefully took the papers and read them through. He turned to Owen. "Are you sure?"

"Ran them three times already."

"What? What is wrong?" Rose prompted again.

The Doctor looked at her in despair. "You."


	9. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

* * *

Rose picked up the TARDIS coral benevolently before placing it inside a fish tank. The fish tank was half full with moist sand, _at the Doctor's request_ ; then they settled it in a dark, wet and warm area inside Torchwood. They positioned three growing accelerators and four UV lamps around it, along with one big humidifier which had been slightly modified with the Doctor's sonic.

"This will take a while." said the Doctor. "Normally it would take thousands of years, but by shattering the shell and letting her feed off the Rift, we might have a chance of traveling."

"Might?" Rose frowned.

"There's a 69% chance that she will be completed for travel before we grow old. The rest is hope."

 _Old. Heh._ Funny little word. More years to add to your life, less active, less hair, more medicine, more wrinkles, arthritis, and more forgetful. No running, no wandering off. No saving planets. No more traveling.

Rose peeked at the Doctor. He was to grow old with her at the same time.

She thought of how he'd look like 30 years in the future, then her face lit up into a really broad smile. She imagined the Doctor with a white beard and white hair. Looking like a Santa in some brown striped suit and his sexy specs over his nose.

* * *

" _What? Are you sure?"_

" _Ran them three times already."_

" _What? What is wrong?" Rose prompted again._

 _The Doctor looked at her frightened. "You."_

" _What?"_ _she pulled a face._

" _You're aging." the Doctor explained. "Well, not exactly you in this context. But your cells. Rose, your cells are aging 0,34 times faster than normal. Your body is changing rapidly, your chromosomes, and I am not sure what's causing it." he turned to Owen. "Can we do another CT? And I want a tissue sample. There might be something we've missed."_

" _Doctor-" Rose said._

" _Her cellular molecules might be mutating in contact with certain influencers."_

" _Doctor-"_

" _I want a biochemical, chromosomal and molecular genetic test with-"_

" _Doctor!" she practically yelled. "I am not taking your tests! We don't have time for that. We have a killer roaming around! I am not your lab rat."_

" _Rose, you don't get it-"_

" _No, I do, actually." Rose loured her voice, breathing quietly the heavy air. They stood in silence before she spoke again. "When I made my first jump, with the dimension cannon, I knew what it would do to me. I knew what risk I'd have to take. I knew it wasn't safe."_

" _Then why did you?"_

" _And I'd do it over again." Rose minced towards him. "Because it's worth it."_

" _Promise me something." the Doctor begged, lowering his head a little. "Promise me you'll lay low."_

 _She knitted her eyebrows. "I can't promise you that."_

And now they were in this weird void of tension. He couldn't accept her being active and she couldn't accept him telling her what to do. At least not with a killer on the loose.

"Are you getting this?" Toshiko passed through the corridors then stopped in front of a monitor. She turned it on with the remote control. "The News."

" _\- due to its consideration. Over 80 deaths, 23 injuries, volcanic gas and $300 million damage has been reported by Alan Stück, one of the representants. It has forced the evacuation of populated areas and destroyed houses, roads, and utilities. Chato Volcano, sometimes called "Cerro Chato" used to be an inactive volcano in north-western Costa Rica north-west of San José, in the province of Alajuela. There is still no answer to why, an inactive volcano that had last erupted 3500 years ago, would erupt now. Scientists have already started analyzing as we speak, on the matter. May their souls rest in peace."_

"Could it be alien?" was the first thing that Rose asked the Doctor.

"Why do you think that?"

"I don't know. I've traveled with you for too long to think that this is normal."

"I've also taken a look at the source of its eruption. And there's something I've noticed." Toshiko sat at her desk, typing away. She made a hologram of the Earth pop around their heads, spinning in 3D. "This is the Earth a week ago. And this," she pressed a button. "is the Earth now."

"I don't see a difference." Ianto apologized, at which Toshiko zoomed in on the projection. She ran the animation once more.

"But that can't be." Owen complained disillusioned. "It's impossible."

"But that's the whole Pacific Plate. Why has it moved?" Rose asked.

"According to my calculations the plate has moved 50 mm by now, and that's not all. Weirdly enough, it's been moving in the wrong direction. It's coming-"

"South." the Doctor finished.

* * *

"So much for taking it slow, eh?" Rose commented. After having found out about the eruption, Rose immediately called her father, Pete Tyler. Concerned about the situation, they decided to fix a meeting with Torchwood's committee to discuss on the matter _and_ the killings which apparently, spread over the whole of Europe.

" _How come we never heard about it?" Rose asked Pete on the other line. "People are literally burning to death and we've done nothing?"_

" _I didn't know either. Not until yesterday. And then you call and tell me about Frank William, which for the record, I've met before."_

" _Something doesn't add up, dad. But we'll find out what's causing it. I promise."_

" _Yes. And, love?"_

" _Yes?"_

" _How's the Doctor?"_

 _In the corner of her eye, she noticed the Doctor care for the baby TARDIS. "He's coping, in his own way. I think he'd give anything to get the TARDIS working with everything happening."_

" _Well, you look out for each other."_

" _Yes." she hung up._

"I think we are ready to go. Sorry, for not being able to help with the Weevils." Rose told the others. "We have to be back in London by tonight, and it would kill me to spend another second not doing anything. Will you be alright?"

"We're always alright." Owen said. "And you take care. We don't know what kind of disease you might carry in that body of yours."

Rose rolled her eyes "Tell Jake to call me.", then turned to the Doctor. "You ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, Rose Tyler." he grinned.

* * *

After stuffing everything they had back in the car (except for the TARDIS coral, which was now feeding off the Rift) they drove off via M4.

"I'm knackered." Rose yawned, steering the wheel.

"I could take it from here." the Doctor offered.

"What? _You_ know how to drive?"

"What do you take me for? Of course I know how to drive. Mind you, back in the days I had a car. Named her Bessie."

"Bessie?" Rose's lip twitched. "That's something you'd name a horse." she laughed.

"Oi! Don't diss Bessie. One of the best cars I've ever had." he chuckled. "I'm serious though. Let me drive. Get some sleep."

It was a nice evening, _maybe a bit too hot for autumn_ , the Doctor thought. As he drove the car on the full roads of Britain, he opened the window to let some air in. His eyes fell onto Rose who was curled up in the seat beside him, sleeping. He studied her face, the forms of her. _Oh, Rose_. Something in the back of his mind felt perplexed and remorseful. The fact that Rose's genes had mutated to such extent was his fault. Having a body such fragile as a human one was worrisome. The TARDIS had that effect on people; having their leucocytes gain more fighting power than usual. And that was a good thing. Yet the dimension cannon was too dominant, causing all sorts of problems. In this case, a rather fast aging.

The Doctor tapped the steering wheel with his fingers. Then he hit it. "Dammit!" he tried to shout but instead whispered, trying not to wake Rose. _Dammit_ , he thought again. And the fact that she was shutting him out was not helping either. He closed his eyes, exhaling the air out of his lungs.

He was afraid he could lose her again.


	10. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

* * *

"Rose." he shook her arm gently. "We're back. Feeling better?"

"Yes, thank you." Rose yawned, covering her mouth. "How long have I been out?"

"Let me see." the Doctor took a good sniff then tasted the air by sucking it in sharply. "About three hours."

Rose blinked. "What?" the Doctor asked.

"Nothing." she escaped a giggle.

"What?"

"Nothing, just.." she cocked her head. "You never stop to amaze me, I guess."

After entering the mansion and setting their luggage in front of the door, they were greeted by wet kisses from Jackie and Tony. The kisses from Tony were most welcomed, but the ones from Jackie weren't the Doctor's cup of tea. He wiped his cheek, grimacing.

"You two had a good trip?" Jackie was curious. The Doctor and Rose exchanged glances, unsure of what to say. "Oh, don't tell me. I said it before and I'll say it now, you two are looking for trouble." Jackie continued.

"More like ' _trouble is looking for us'_." Rose muttered under her breath, at which the Doctor chuckled.

"Made some dinner. Pete won't be home for the next two hours and me and Tony, we've already eaten. I can put some tea on." Jackie said.

"No, I think we're fine, mum." Rose smiled. "Thank you."

"Will you read me a bedtime story?" Tony jumped up and down excited. "Please, Rose. Please!"

"You know what?" Rose winked. "I was thinking that the Doctor could do it this time. What do you think?"

The Doctor made a face. He looked over at Jackie. "As long as it's child-friendly you can go ahead." she said. "And no Daleks, Cybermen or Slikeen."

"Slitheen." he corrected. The Doctor took Tony into his arms. "Well then. What story would you like? I have three thousand and twenty-four stories packed inside my brain."

"The one about the TARDIS." Tony smiled.

"Oh, _that_ one?" the Doctor paused. "Well, I guess I'll have to narrow some down."

He winked at Rose before stepping away and out of the living room. Jackie looked at her daughter. "Never thought I'd say this, but he'd make a good father. So I'll be accepting of you two."

"Mum!" Rose's eyes widened. She rubbed her forehead, her chin close to her body.

"What? You can't tell me that _nothing_ 's happened back when you were traveling."

"Mum!" she repeated. "We're not like _that_."

"As long as you use protection."

"Oh My God! I can't believe we're having this conversation."

The Doctor tucked Tony in and switched the lamp on his nightstand on. He sat on a chair nearby, running a hand through his hair. He saw the little boy watch him curiously and excited.

"Let's see then. Has Rose ever told you the story of how we met?"

Tony shook his head. "No."

The Doctor smiled. Oh, he could remember every minute of it. Every word, every glance, every second. Mind you, they didn't really get along at first, calling her a stupid ape and all that. Yet that seemed to still be a beautiful memory to look at.

"Once upon a time, there was a man with blue eyes and charming smile roaming the streets of London. Well, not exactly roaming, more like running. He was set to save the world from a bad creature that landed on Earth in search of consumption. That creature was called 'The Nestene Consciousness' and it was made out of plastic. Living plastic. Now, the man had a plan to stop the bad creature from taking over the world and he was to do so by giving it a chance. Always give them a chance, Tony. You never know what reason hides behind actions. And so he searched for the core of it." he sat back in his chair.

Rose walked up the stairs to Tony's bedroom whose door was slightly opened. Her intention was to enter, however, when she heard the Doctor talk, she stopped and listened.

"And then he met a girl. A beautiful blonde girl with rosy cheeks and big brown eyes. The girl was not supposed to be there at all, but looking back, the man is glad she was. So they ran together. He took her hand and they ran. Through all the galaxies and time and space. They beat the Nestene Consciousness with help of her bravery and then they continued to save worlds. Together. And he was happy. After all of the bad things that happened in his life, he was happy. And then he fell in love. In the whole wide universe, he managed to do so. And it was beautiful."

"Doctor?" Tony called. "Do you love my sister?"

The Doctor took a moment to smile. "Yes. I do. Very much."

"Good. Because I do too."

"Well I'm sure you do." the Doctor stood to kiss the child on his forehead, then tucked him in better. "Good night, Tony."

"Good night, Doctor."

At that, Rose quickly tip-toed away from the door and down the stairs. Then she walked them back up as if it were the first time she did so.

"I thought you might be hungry." she was holding a plate of sandwiches. When she saw the Doctor, she opened her mouth with the tip of her tongue showing. "It's chicken and salad."

"Rose?" he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "Were you eavesdropping?" he raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she laughed. "I just came up the stairs, you saw me."

"Oh, _yeah_. Yeah, I did. _Of course_ you did. Just this second, bringing me a plate of sandwiches. _Mhm_."

Rose looked away embarrassed. "If you don't want them, then fine."

"Never said that did I?" he stepped closer with a lopsided grin on his face. He stared at her for a moment, then chuckled. "Thank you." he took the plate. "I've got an idea. How about some star gazing?"

Rose kept minimal eye contact. "Yeah. Sure. Stargazing." she nodded. " _Stargazing!_! Perfect." then she ran away.

The Doctor grinned to himself. "Yep. Still got it."


	11. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

* * *

They took the liberty to grab some covers and lay them on the ground under the starry night of September. Luckily, the ground wasn't wet. They sat down.

The Doctor took a bite from the sandwich Rose made and gazed up.

"Normally, there are one thousand million stars in this Galaxy. I can see only 80 thousand million." he said. "No wonder it's so dark outside, it's not even winter."

Rose's look fell on the lines that the Moon created on the Doctor's face. He was beautiful. Maybe not the most handsome man in the world, but he was utterly beautiful.

"I'm so hot." the Doctor grabbed at his collar.

"Yes, you are." Rose said. She opened her eyes widely, _did she say that out loud?_

But the Doctor didn't reply. Instead, he lay down on his back, his hands under his head. He took a good sniff of the air.

"Wish I could take you up there." he said. "The stars. I want to take you up there again."

"And you will." she continued, joining him into staring at the balls of light. "One day."

"Yeah, but I want to do it now. Not when we're old and rusty. I want us to run."

"Is not like you to be so pessimistic." Rose turned to see him.

"Ever since I became this person, I feel like there's not enough time, Rose. Like I could die any second."

"Then don't." she hit him playfully. "Who's gonna help me fly the TARDIS then?"

"Ah, you're smart enough. You'll figure it out." he smiled. "You wouldn't need an old cranky grandpa around you."

"By the time you become a grandpa, I'll become a grandma too. Maybe you've forgotten, but I'm aging faster than you now."

The Doctor sighed. There was no more escaping or cheating death anymore, not even if he tried really hard. It was funny in a way. He used to believe that he'd never be able to go through the slow path, yet there he was. Looking at the stars with Rose Tyler. And she was sick.

"Rose, I know you don't want to talk about it but," he gathered his courage. "where did you get the sonic screwdriver?"

Rose thought for a second. "From you. Well, not _you_ you and not the other Doctor either. It was a you from another Universe. A parallel version."

The Doctor now looked attentively at her. She continued. "Remember when Donna created multiple parallel Universes around her? That's when I jumped in. I managed to slip through into one of them. I was so close. So bloody close." her eyes became slightly watery.

"What's happened?"

"She never met you. And that changed the whole course of creation. And by not meeting you, the whole world fell apart. And by that..." her voice cracked slightly. "so did the Doctor. You, I mean him, died. And I was so close." with that, tears started streaming down her cheeks and the Doctor pulled her into his arms. He squeezed tightly, pressing a kiss on the top of her head. "That's a screwdriver from a dead man's hand."

"Oh, Rose. That reality never happened. You don't have to feel guilty."

"But I am." she responded. The Doctor wiped her tears off. "I saw you, I mean him, die. And then I saw him get shot by a Dalek. I thought that was the end."

The Doctor neared her cheek with his lips, brushing the tears away. "Cry, Rose. Take it all out." he pressed his forehead against her temple.

And so she did. What seemed to be only five minutes felt like hours of crying. When she was done, her eyes were the color of cherries.

"Feeling better?" he asked, at which she nodded.

"I am. Thank you." Rose replied, burying her head in his chest. He ran a hand through her hair, playing with it. "I loved him. And he left me."

At that, his singular heart broke to pieces, scattered on the floor. It was so hurtful, so painful; she really had no idea who he was.

Yet he was okay with that. There she was in his arms, the girl he wished for. Maybe they didn't have the relationship he hoped for, but they were friends. A shoulder to cry on. And he was okay with that. Better to help her when she's down than not be able to help her at all.

"He did too." he finally replied, although he knew he was talking about himself.

"Then why did he leave?"

"Because he really believed that you'd be happier with me."

* * *

Ronnie laughed at the screen. He was watching funny videos on his computer with his pals, having a great time. He was scrolling through the feed when with a glimpse, something caught his attention. He clicked on it.

"What is that, then?" one of his friends asked. They stared at what seemed to be a glowing bug.

" _Look what I found." the one that was filming said. "I don't know what it is. It looks really weird."_

 _He then held up a jar to catch the creature, and after doing so, he made holes for it to breathe and then showed it to the camera again. "It's some kind of bug. I found it in the fields eating some red goo." he laughed. "I'm gonna make so much money."_

With that, the video ended. Ronnie looked at the others. "That's gotta be fake. Hollywood's stepping up their game nowadays."

"I don't know, man. It looks pretty real to me."

"Yeah, right. As real as your six pack." Ronnie laughed. He then liked the video and moved to another.


End file.
